Locomotive-pilot draw-bar coupling



(No Model.)

w. P. P-RENDERGAST. LOCOMOTIVE PILOT DRAW BAR GOUPLING.

No. 506,724. Patented Oct. 17,1893.

I mines-.96 7 fi r g e ntozv coupler and platform.

UNITED STATES WILL PRENDERGAST,

PATENT OFFICE.

OF DE SOTO, MISSOURI.

LOCOMOTlVE-PILOT DRAW-BAR COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No- 506,724, dated October1'7, 1893.} I Application filed May 9, 1893. Serial No. 473,523- (Nomodel.)

To allwhom/ it may concern..-

Be it known that I, WILL P. PRENDERGAST, a citizen of the United States,residing at De Soto, county of Jefferson, and State of Missouri, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Locomotive-PilotDraw-Bar Couplers, of which the following is such a full, clear, andexact description as will onable any one skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

My invention relates to draw-bar couplers for locomotive engines.

I have as the object ofmy invention, to provide means whereby a pilotdraw-bar may be readily and conveniently coupled to a car without dangerto the person effecting the coupling, the said coupling to be efiectedby means of appliances which will require only a slight exertion ofmuscular power on the part of the operator, the said appliances to bepermanently attached to the locomotive pilot, and to be durable and notlikely to get out of repair.

I have as a further object of my invention, to so construct the meansemployed for effecting the coupling as to adapt it to use on alocomotive pilot in which the pilot bars are placed parallel to theroadbed.

In conjunction with the coupling devices aforesaid, I may provide aplatform situated to one side of the rear part of the pilot, upon whichthe operator may stand when a coupling is to be made, said platformbeing adapted to be removed out of the way when notin use.

These several objects I accomplish by means of the devices hereinafterdescribed, the patentable novelty of said devices being pointed out inthe claims.

My invention will be best understood by reference to the accompanyingdrawings, in

which the same marks of reference indicate the same parts throughout theseveral views.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the pilot ofv conjunction therewith.Fig. 2 is a top view of the pilot of a locomotive provided with my Fig.3 is a front elevation of a locomotive pilot provided with my couplerand platform.

are the pilot bars of a locomotive pilot or cow-catcher of any ordinaryconstruction. In the drawings the said bars are shown as placed parallelwith the roadbed or track, as my invention is peculiarly applicable tolocomotive pilots so constructed, although it may also be used uponpilots having the bars lying in vertical planes.

11' is the central frame piece of the pilot, to which the bars 10 areproperly united.

To the under side of the central frame piece 11, near the centerthereof, is secured a shaft 12. The manner of securing said shaft 12 tothe frame piece 11 is by means of a suitable bracket or equivalentdevice, which will permit the shaft to rotate freely therein. The shaft12 is of suflicientlength to have its ends extend beyond the frame piece11 at both sides thereof.

Rigidly mounted upon the shaft 12 is a bail like arm 14. The saidbail-like arm 14 extends through the bars of the pilot. One or more ofsaid bars have their ends cut away, and are secured to angle-irons 15,as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, so as to permit the bail-like arm 14 toextend outward at the front of the ilot.

p Upon the outer end of the bail-like arm 14 is placed the antifrictionroller 16, said roller being adapted to rotate freely upon that part ofthe arm on which it is placed, and being further adapted to take underthe pilot drawbar, as hereinafter explained.

Upon one end of the shaft 12 is rigidly affixed a sprocket wheel 17.Over said sprocket-wheel17 passes a sprocket-chain 18, which saidsprocket-chain passes around a second sprocket-wheel 19 mounted upon asecond shaft 20, said shaft 20 being journaled in suitable bearings inbrackets 21 and 22 securedto the rear of the pilot.

Rigidly mounted upon the shaft 20 is a beveled gear-wheel 23. Thebeveled gear-wheel 23 is adapted to mesh-with a second beveledgear-wheel 24. The beveled gear-wheel 24 is rigidly mounted upon thelower extremity of a vertically-extending shaft 25. The shaft 25 isjournaled near its lower end in a bracket 26, and passes upward througha suitable aperture in the heavy cross-beams 27, and has rigidly mountedupon its upper extremity the hand-wheel 28. The beveled wheel 23 is madelarger than the beveled wheel 24 into which it meshes, and thehand-wheel 28 is preferably of considerable diameter, thus augmentingthe power applied by the operator to the hand-wheel 28, and enabling himto lift the draw-bar with a slight application of muscular power.

29 is the locomotive draw-bar, which is of any ordinary construction,and is pivoted to the pilot in the usual manner. The draw-bar 29 restsupon the antifriction roller 16, as shown in Fig. 2.

As it is frequently desirable that the person by whom the coupling ofthe cars to the locomotive is effected, should be carried along by thesaid locomotive, and that there should be provided means whereby heshould be so carried, the said means being so situated relatively to theappliances by which the coupling is efiected as to permit the operatorto efiect such coupling when stationed thereon, I provide for thispurpose a hinged platform 30, which is secured to one side of the pilotnear the rear thereof. I preferably secure the platform to the pilot bymeans of the hinges 31 and 32 attached to the lower bar 10. For thepurpose of strengthening and bracing said platform, I provide a chain 33which is attached atone end to a swivel or staple 34, said swivel orstaple being secured to the outer side of the platform 30, and attheother end to a hook 35 secured to the cross-beam 27. When said platformis to be used it is swung outward into the position shown in Figs. 2 and3. When not in use, it is swung inward in the inwardly-inclined positionshown in Fig. 1. When the platform 31 is swung inward it may be held inthat position by gravity, or the chain 33 may be suitably looped up uponthe hook 35 so as to hold it securely in the position aforesaid.

It is obvious that if preferred, the hinges 31 and 32 hereinbeforedescribed as used in conjunction with the platform 30, may be dispensedwith, and I may provide an extensible platform adapted to be drawn inand out from beneath the pilot in any suitable grooves or slots formedfor that purpose. I regard the latter construction as within the spiritof my invention, the essence of which in this particular, consists inproviding a platform adapted to be removed out of the way when not inuse, and so situated relatively to the hand-wheel 28 as to permitpersons operating the draw-bar to be carried upon the platform.

In Letters Patent No. 491,719, granted to me on February 14, 1893,'Idescribed a locomotive draw-bar coupler somewhat similar to the oneherein described. In the device described in said Letters Patent Iemployed an extensible shaft for rotating the sprocketwheel 21, but itis found in practice that the extensible shaft is very likely to be leftin an exposed position by the operator after having effected a coupling,and when in such exposed position it is very likely to come in contactwith some object near the side of the roadbed, which will invariably soinjure the shaft and the devices employed in conjunction therewith as torender the coupling appliances inoperative. Furthermore, when theextensible shaft is employed, it requires very considerable muscularexertion to raise the heavy iron draw-bar into a suitable position forcoupling.

It has been my design to remedy the several defects present in thedevice referred to, and I effect that design by employing the compactand fixed appliances herein described in lieu of the extensible shaft,the said appliances enabling me to effect the coupling with a markeddecrease in muscular exertion, and by means which lie at all timesentirely out of the way of injury. My present device is also especiallyapplicable to use in conjunction with pilots constructed of bars placedparallel with the roadbed, while the device described in thepatent'aforesaid could not, in the form there described, be convenientl-y applied to locomotive pilots unless they were constructed ofbars placed in a vertical plane.

Having fully described my invention, what I desire to claim and secureby Letters Patent of the United States is 1. As a means for raising andlowering the pilot draw-bar of a locomotive, the combination of an armmounted beneath said drawbar, a vertically extending shaft placed at therear of the pilot, said shaft being provided with a suitable handle forrotating the same, and intermediate mechanism between said shaft andsaid arm, for the purpose described.

2. As a means for raising and lowering the pilot draw-bar of alocomotive, the combination of a bail-like arm mounted beneath saiddraw-bar, a vertically-extending shaft placed at the rear of the pilot,said shaft being provided with a suitable handle for rotating the same,and intermediate mechanism between said shaft and said arm, for thepurpose described.

3. As a means for raising and lowering the pilot draw-bar of alocomotive, the combination of an arm rigidly mounted upon a shaft, awheel also rigidly mounted upon said shaft, a second wheel rigidlymounted upon a sec ond shaft, suitable intermediate mechanism forcommunicating the motion of said second wheel to the wheel firstmentioned, a gear wheel mounted upon said second shaft, a thirdvertically-extending shaft provided near its lower end with a gear wheelmeshing into the gear wheel first mentioned, and havinga suitable handleor hand-wheel near its upper end by means of which it may be rotated.

4. The combination with a pilot constructed of pilot bars placedparallel with the roadbed, and having an aperture therethrough formed bycutting away the end of one of said pilot bars and supporting said pilotbar my hand and affixed my seal, this 24th day with a suitableangle-iron, of an arm extendof April, 1893, in the presence of the twosubing outwardly through the aperture aforesaid, scribing'witnesses.

the said arm being mounted beneath the draw- WILL P. PRENDERGAST. [T..s.] 5 bar, and means for elevating and lowering Witnesses:

said arm, for the purpose described. WALTER D. GOLES,

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set M. M. BROWN.

